In the Hands of Strangers

A World War II Story of Courage, Heroism, and Enduring Friendship

On June 12, 1944, six days after the D-Day invasion of Normandy, U.S. fighter pilot Fred Moretto is ambushed by German Messerschmitt 109s. Barely escaping his burning P-47 Thunderbolt, Lieutenant Moretto parachutes into the French countryside where villagers working for the Resistance conceal him from the Germans for two months in a bread oven, a secret perch in an attic, and a hayloft.

In 1993, nearly 50 years later, Kim Moretto Niemeier convinces her father to return to France. Reuniting with the people and the places where he survived against all odds re-invigorates his French Connection and launches Kim’s 20-year odyssey to uncover the dramatic details of her father’s inspiring story.